TRAVEL AGENCIES, 2010

In
2010, there were 899 travel agencies and their offices that arranged
same-day trips and travels in the country and abroad for domestic tourists
as well as travels in the Republic of Croatia for foreign tourists.

In
2010, as compared to 2009, the number of domestic same-day tourists, whose
trips were organised by travel agencies, increased by 3.2% for those
travelling in the Republic of Croatia and by 17.9% for those travelling abroad.

The
number of domestic tourists whose travels in the Republic of Croatia were arranged by tourist agencies amounted in 2010 to
315 132 and the number of tourist nights to 1 350 904. There were four
tourist nights on the average.

The
number of domestic tourists whose travels were arranged by tourist agencies
in the country increased by 8.5% and the number of tourist nights by 7.1%
compared to 2009, with the average of four tourist nights.

Out of 252
270 domestic tourists who travelled abroad through the mediation of travel
agencies, most of them (70.5%) went to Italy (16.1%), Austria (13.4%), the
Czech Republic (7.5%), Germany (6.7%), France (6.6%), Tunisia (6.0%),
Slovenia (4.9%), Hungary (4.8%) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (4.5%). There
were 29.5% of tourists who travelled to other countries.

Concerning
the structure of nights of foreign tourists in the Republic of Croatia who
travelled through the mediation of travel agencies, the most of them (75.3%)
were realised by tourists from Germany (25.4%), Italy (9.2%), Poland
(7.4%), the Czech Republic (7.0%), Slovenia (6.3%), the United Kingdom
(5.2%), France and the Russian Federation (5.0% each) and Austria (4.8%).
Tourists from other countries realised 24.7% of tourist nights.

The survey covers all business entities
and parts thereof whose seat is in the Republic of Croatia, whose activity
includes organising of tourist transport for domestic and foreign same–day
visitors and tourists.

A travel agency is a trade company or an individual
trader, a tradesman or their organisational unit rendering services of
organising or intermediation of services related to travel and stays of
tourists if it fulfils the conditions of rendering of services as regulated
in the Provision of Tourism Services Act (NN, Nos 68/07 and
88/10).

According
to the organisation of its work, a travel agency may be: a tour operator, a
travel agency – intermediary, a travel
agency – intermediary engaged in rendering
passenger assistance service and mediation in private accommodation, in
selling tickets for trips or performances and exchange office or tourist
information services and a tourist agency that is both a tour operator and
travel agency – intermediary.

Tourist
is every person who, outside his or her place of usual residence, spends at
least one night in an accommodation facility or in another facility
intended for accommodating tourists for rest or recreation, health,
studying, sports, religion, family, business, public missions or
gatherings. Migrants, cross-border workers, diplomats, military members at
regular missions, refugees and nomads are not considered tourists.

Tour or
cruise is a tourist journey lasting for several days
according to a specific tour (cruise) itinerary (elaborated plan of the
journey). It is an inclusive tour that comprises various transportation
means and all tourist services during the journey, including a guide and
tour conductor.

Table 5. contains data on same-day trips that travel
agencies either arrange or intermediate in arrangement for tourists who
stay in a particular tourist resort. This provides a type of leisure to tourists
during their stay in a particular tourist resort. The number of departures
refers to the realised number of trips in the course of a year.

Table
6. shows data on only the main transportation mean in which domestic
tourists travelled in the Republic of Croatia or from the Republic of
Croatia, respectively (it does not refer to same-day trips). The transport
may be arranged by a travel agency or it can be individually arranged
transport by using any transportation mean.